Just as Jiang Lin was pondering how to leave this staircase labyrinth, a small head poked out from the stairs above him.
Two eyes, one mouth.
The stone head looked at Jiang Lin: "Want to trade? Trade? If you trade, I can specially offer a guide service."
Jiang Lin: "Oh? You're forcing sales now?"
If he didn't buy something, he wouldn't be allowed to leave?
So, were the little seahorse and the 'person' wearing a straw hat over there lost too?
"How can this be called forced sales..."
The stone head became anxious, "The guide service I can provide is not just this small staircase labyrinth! You will definitely need it."
The boss said that if they didn't make a deal, they would have to eat dirt.
Seeing that Jiang Lin remained silent, the stone head receded.
The next moment, it appeared on an inverted staircase in front of Jiang Lin, facing him and pushing its wares:
"Actually, our stones are very good."
"Whether for sharpening knives, making stone tools, or for formations, they are all suitable."
"They are also very strong when used to build houses."
The stone head extended a claw and hammered twice on the staircase.
Clang! Clang!
"Two words: sturdy!"
Jiang Lin: "Don't you have customers? Why aren't they selling?"
He said this, crouching down.
He tried to pry off a small stone from the staircase.
He failed twice, and only after gradually increasing his strength and using his Ghost King power did he finally manage to pry off a piece.
Upon closer inspection, Jiang Lin's expression turned serious.
Could this stone possess natural labyrinth properties?
—Imperceptible, untraceable.
"Is this labyrinth integrated with the mirage, or has it been assimilated by it?"
If such stones were taken back and arranged slightly, they could directly form an interference labyrinth.
Not only that, but they should also have good effects when used to build secret rooms or formations.
It was quite similar in principle to the materials used for the Southern Hall arena.
But why weren't they selling?
Regarding this, the stone head opposite scratched its head, "The residents in the mirage don't need them..."
Seeing Jiang Lin's gaze shift to the straw-hatted 'person' still lost on the other side, the stone head finally revealed the reason:
"They cannot provide the trade materials we require."
Jiang Lin: "What do you want?"
"Pearls from the Shell District, or something more advanced, from mermaids or flood dragons."
"What about other items of equivalent value? For example, certain parts from ghosts or demons?"
"No. Only from the sea race."
"..."
Now Jiang Lin understood why their business was always unsuccessful.
Firstly, even if those customers had these items, they might not be willing to trade them for stones.
While the stones were good, they were not necessarily what the customers urgently needed.
Moreover, after obtaining pearls and returning to this small labyrinth for trade...
In this mirage, which had entered random mode, it was truly not a simple matter.
Too troublesome.
But, didn't this stone just say it could guide?
Jiang Lin asked, "Can you really guide?"
"Of course!"
"How can I be sure you're not deceiving me?"
"Because I, I..." The stone head stopped midway, suddenly closing its mouth, "I can't say this."
Jiang Lin paused and said, "How about this, you tell me the way to the Shell District. If I successfully trade for pearls, I'll trade with you."
"...Alright."
The stone head scratched its head, finally compromising.
In recent years, their staircase labyrinth had the worst business.
It raised its stone hand and pointed Jiang Lin in a direction, "Wait there for ten minutes before going out."
"If you get pearls, be sure to come back and trade with me! I'll give you a big discount!"
"En."
Jiang Lin walked up the staircase to the right.
Behind him, the stone head added gloomily, "If you get pearls and don't come to trade with me, I will definitely make sure you can't leave the mirage!"
Jiang Lin's footsteps didn't stop, and he followed the path indicated by the other party.
After waiting for about ten minutes, he stepped into the next area.
...
Shining, dazzling.
This was Jiang Lin's first impression of the Shell District.
Above his head, on the walls, on the ground... everywhere were glowing river mussels.
These river mussels were different from those on land.
The shells were not a single dark color, but had deep and shallow patterns.
Exquisite and beautiful, they were completely natural works of art.
They varied in size, some large enough for two people to hide inside, others no bigger than a silver dollar.
As the water currents flowed through the air, the river mussels opened and closed, revealing the precious pearls within.
There were purple, pink, white, and black ones.
The luster and brightness of the pearls also varied, some strong, some weak.
Recalling the words of the black fish shopkeepers, Jiang Lin took two steps forward and tapped a light-colored river mussel the size of his palm.
"Do you have any healing items that can be taken out?"
The river mussel looked at him and began to blow bubbles: "Yes. But I want to trade for food from [Mei Wei de Kou Mo]."
"Food from Mei Wei de Kou Mo?"
"It's from the Paradise Food District, there's a restaurant called Mei Wei de Kou Mo there."
After the palm-sized river mussel finished speaking, it waited for a minute.
Receiving no response, it slowly closed.
Jiang Lin looked at the cave full of river mussels, thought for a moment, and circulated his ghost energy within.
His voice, amplified by the ghost energy, directly spread throughout the cave.
"Are there any healing items that can treat eyes and legs and can be taken out? What are the trading conditions?"
As soon as he finished speaking, all the river mussels in the cave immediately opened and closed.
The pearls inside emitted a soft glow.
"I have something that can heal eyes."
"I have it too, the trading condition is a human heart."
"I want a Tear of True Emotion."
"I want the eyes of a snow fox!"
For a moment, the bubbles spat out by these river mussels almost filled the entire cave.
However, Jiang Lin noticed that one giant river mussel remained tightly closed.
It seemed that it had not opened or closed since he entered.
'Master, master, I have tears here!'
Listening to the voices of those river mussels, the seven-colored egg in his sleeve suddenly spoke.
'Before, the ghost child Xu Nan shed a drop of bloody tear, which I collected.'
'It should be enough for a trade.'
Jiang Lin nodded slightly, signaling the seven-colored egg to go and trade.
Meanwhile, he quietly moved closer to that giant river mussel.
In this mirage, whenever healing items that could be taken out were inquired about, the Shell District was always mentioned.
That god reincarnation had been in the mirage for some time.
If he truly came with the intention of healing, he might have arrived already...
Just then, the giant river mussel, large enough for two people to hide in, opened and closed.
Two figures swiftly flew out.
One of them, a middle-aged man, carried a large bag on his back, was slightly balding on top, and had a decent appearance.
It was the god reincarnation that Jiang Lin was looking for!
"Guo Linfei!" Jiang Lin's ghost energy transformed into a net and was thrown directly towards him.
"This way!"
Next to the middle-aged man, a delicate and pretty girl with exquisite features waved her hand, throwing out two items in succession.
One was black, like a sea urchin ball, used to deflect Jiang Lin's ghost energy net.
The other was a small gray fish.
The gray fish's belly was bulging. As soon as it landed on the ground, it immediately spat out a lot of smoke that interfered with vision and sense of direction.
Taking advantage of this opportunity, the delicate girl pulled the middle-aged man and turned to jump into an invisible barrier.
Entering the next area.
Jiang Lin followed closely, chasing after them.
'Master, wait for me!'
The seven-colored egg, which was in the process of trading with the river mussel, quickly handed over the bloody tear with one hand and picked up the purple, fingernail-sized pearl with the other.
It followed its master without stopping, afraid of being left behind.
...